‘I did everything I could for India’: Poonam Raut on retirement and unfinished dream

Poonam Raut spent four years trying to get back into the Indian team. She scored runs in domestic cricket, recovered from illness and worked towards a comeback. But the call never came.Her last international appearance was in 2021. When Raut announced her retirement earlier this month, it was not because she had stopped wanting to play for India. It was because she had begun to realise that the return she had been working towards might not happen.“I always had the desire to return to the Indian team,” Raut tells TimesofIndia.com.

“Unfortunately, that didn't happen.”Raut represented India for more than 12 years, scoring 2,299 runs in 73 ODIs. Her career included an 86 against England in the 2017 Women's World Cup final and a world-record 320-run opening partnership with Deepti Sharma against Ireland that year.India lost the World Cup final at Lord's by nine runs, but the campaign helped change how women's cricket was viewed in the country.

For Raut, the memories go beyond the runs. She remembers messages from young girls whose parents had begun encouraging them to play cricket after watching India.Her own journey began when women's cricket offered few guarantees of a career. Her father needed financial help from his employer to buy her first cricket kit. Now, having stepped away from international cricket, Raut wants to concentrate on coaching and mentoring the next generation.In an exclusive conversation with this website, she speaks about the comeback that never materialised, the people who supported her and the innings that helped inspire a generation.Excerpts:After playing international cricket for more than 12 years, your last appearance for India came in 2021.

What happened over the last four years that eventually led to your retirement?My only aim over these four years was to make a comeback. I had two very good domestic seasons, finished among the leading run-scorers and performed well in multi-day cricket. But I couldn't get selected, and that's fine.The selectors are focusing on youngsters, and I felt it was becoming difficult to continue at this stage of my career.

Since childhood, my dream was to represent India. I lived that dream and achieved my goal. I did everything I could for the country, although I always wanted to return to the team.Before last year's domestic season, I suffered from dengue, followed by pneumonia. I had a lot of joint pain and struggled to recover. I worked hard to regain my fitness, but I realised my body wasn't recovering the way it used to.

That also contributed to my decision.I have been mentoring young cricketers for four years. Many were 10-12 when I started working with them; today, they are 14-15 and approaching the competitive level. I felt that if I continued playing for another two or three years, I might not be able to give them the time they need at this crucial stage.It was a very difficult decision. When you've played cricket for so long, retiring is never easy.Your 86-run knock in the 2017 Women's World Cup final against England remains one of the most memorable innings of your career.

India fell agonisingly short of the target. What does that innings mean to you today?I am very grateful that I could contribute when India needed it the most. The result didn't go our way, but I feel we gave everything we had. That's how sport is sometimes.I also scored a hundred against Australia and contributed against Pakistan. I was among India's leading run-scorers in that World Cup.

Whatever I had to give, I gave everything in that tournament.At that time, there wasn't much money in women's cricket, and not many people watched it. But the way we played changed the perspective of a lot of people.The night before the final, I couldn't sleep, so I opened Facebook and Instagram and started reading the messages I had received. There were messages from young girls and senior citizens.

I became very emotional.A lot of girls told me they were able to play cricket because of us. Some said their fathers had encouraged them to take up the sport after watching our performances. Imagine parents who had earlier refused to let their daughters play cricket now encouraging them to pursue it.Some girls even told me they wanted to cut their hair like Poonam Di!There were elderly people who had sent their blessings and prayers as well.

Reading those messages made me realise that we had genuinely brought about a change.You made your India debut at a time when women's cricket did not enjoy the recognition it receives today. How difficult was it to pursue that dream, especially when it came to convincing your parents and getting the necessary support?It was very difficult. My parents supported me at a time when cricket was barely considered a career option for girls.Despite that, they never doubted me or asked me to reconsider.

I told them I loved the game so much that I could play the entire day without getting tired of it.The very next day, my father took me to buy a cricket kit and enrolled me in coaching. His financial situation wasn't particularly strong. During the 2017 World Cup, he told me that his boss had helped him financially when he needed money for my kit and coaching.You won't believe how much that kit meant to me.

The moment I got it, my excitement doubled. Everything I had watched on television suddenly became real.I used that kit carefully for around five years because I knew how special it was. The bat, pads and helmet meant so much to me because they represented the beginning of my journey.My parents also faced criticism from people around them, but they continued supporting me. They believed in me, and that played a huge role in helping me reach the Indian team.Indian women's cricket has made significant progress, with the team winning the 2025 World Cup.

Having seen the game evolve over the years, where do you think Indian women's cricket still needs to improve to achieve sustained dominance at the global level?We have the talent to dominate women's…